How To Prepare Muscle-Building Meals

Eat Your Way To Big Muscle

The problem with getting a meal plan from someone other than yourself is that if you don’t like what’s on it, you’re probably not going to follow it. But you can formulate a meal that has your macros already calculated for you and will help you lose fat while gaining muscle at the same time. In fact, I’m going to do it for you. Not only can I calculate your macros for you, I can write out every single thing you should eat during the day and make your grocery list for you too.

Seriously? No. Fork off.

The key to successful meal planning comes down to two crucial rules.

Rule #1: Incorporate foods you like to eat.

Rule #2: Follow through.

Planning your meals means taking time out of your routine to put pen to paper or finger to touch screen and actually figuring out how much of your paycheck you’re willing (able) to spend on groceries for the next week, as well as what you actually might want to shove into your mouth.

Once you’ve committed to the top two rules it comes down to picking your proteins and figuring out how much you need, based on, you know, you.
Athletes and very active people trying to gain more muscle mass should have a target protein consumption of about 0.68-1 gram of protein per pound of body weight (1.5-2.2 grams per kilogram).

If someone tells you there is a magical equation for fat loss and muscle gain they’re probably full of shibanana oil. There really isn’t an exact answer for how much protein one should consume in a day and that’s because we aren’t anatomically identical. The equation varies based on each individual and their body, activity status, health conditions and realistically their budget and lifestyle choices also come into play. Protein can increase satiety for some people so you might want to consider this when planning your meals if you find yourself hungry at specific times of the day.

In relation to fat, muscle burns more calories. So instead of wondering how to eat to burn fat and gain muscle, instead needs you should be asking, “How do I gain muscle while maintaining a lean body mass in a caloric deficit?”

I promise it isn’t as hard as finding out the square root of pie…

Take your weight and multiply it by:

__ lbs x 0.68 = lower end of protein needs

Then

__lbs x 1 = higher end of protein needs

Ex: For an 183-pound active male looking to preserve his lean body mass while maintaining a very active lifestyle, he would calculate his protein intake this way:

183 x 0.68 = 124 gr Protein/day
183 x 1 = 183 gr Protein/day

The dude in our example above needs 124-183 grams of protein per day. Let’s pick a mid-range number (153 grams) and assume he’s eating 3 meals and 1 or 2 snacks a day.

So how do you get 153 grams of protein on your plate?

Divide that by the amount of meals and snacks you consume in a day.

153 grams divided by 4 (3 meals and 1 snack) = 38.2

Have three meals with 38 grams of protein and two snacks of 20 grams (rounding up to 20 because it’s easier), that all adds up to a solid 154 grams per day.

Now rather than telling you what this mysterious man from the above example needs to eat, let me share some knowledge that should help you figure out what to eat when you’re sick of protein shakes.

Endeavor to build your meal around your protein. Start by deciding what proteins you want to eat for the week. Variety in the diet will not only provide you with variable micronutrients each day but it’ll also help prevent meal fatigue.

You need to love your food!

I recommend trying to have a variety of proteins through the week rather than cycling through single proteins, like having broccoli, chicken and egg whites every day. You can exceed your goals while enjoying the food you like. Trust me, significant others like it when they don’t have to eat boiled chicken for supper every night too. Not all of your protein needs to come from the conventional things either. Strive for a few meat free meals per week. You can get plenty of protein from grains, dairy, eggs, lentils, beans, nuts, and fish.

If you’re going to meal prep ahead of time, keep your foods stored properly and cook in batches. Anything that has a stew or soup like consistency will generally freeze well, so throw at least one portion in the freezer each time you cook and you’ll have a solid set of backup of frozen meals in no time.

If you focus on eating your protein throughout the day soon you won’t have to count your protein intake and you can spend more time doing other stuff, like lifting heavy shit.

PS- Eat the whole damn egg, the yolk contains almost half of the protein from an egg.

*Protein content of processed foods can vary based on serving size. Not all items listed are guaranteed to be accurate. This article is to be used as a general reference guide and not as a substitute for professional medical advice, treatment or diagnosis. This piece was written for information purposes only.

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